Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1887-11-28

but this well in the Bethlehem barn was
not so much for the beasts that perish as
for our race thirstsmitten, desert-trayeled
and simoon-struck. Oh, my soul, weary
with sin, stoop down and drink to-day out
Of that Bethlehem we'll
Gas the heart psnteth after the water
brooks, so my soul psnteth after thee, o
God. You would get better under
standing of this amidst the Adirondaeks in
summer time. Here comes q swift footed
deer. The hounds are close on the track;
it has leaped chasms and scaled cliffs; it is
sagged out; its eyes are rolling in death;
ITS TONGUE Is LoLLING
from its foaming mouth. Faster the deer.
faster the dogs, until it plunges into
Schroon lake, and the hounds can follow
it no further, and it puts down its head
and mouth until the nostril is clean sub
merged in the cool wave, and understand
it: "As the hart panteth for the water
brook, so panteth my soul after thee, o
God" Oh, bring me water from that
well! Little child, who has learned of
Jesus in the Sabbath school, bring me
some Of that living water. Old man,
who fifty years ago didst find the well,
bring me some of that water. Stranger
in a strange land, who used to hear sung
amidst the Highlands of Scotland, TO the
tune of Bonnie Doom" ''The Star, the
Star of Bethlehem" bring me some of
that water. Whosoever drinketh of that
water shall never thirst. "Oh, that one
would give me drink of the water Of the
we'll of Bethlehem, which is by the gate"
Again, this Gospel WELL like the one
spoken of in the text, is a captured well.
David remembered the time when the good
water of Bethlehem was in the possession
of his ancestors. His father drank there,
his mother drank there. He remembered
how the water tasted when he was boy,
and came up there from play. We never
forget the old we'll we used to drink out
Of when we were boys or girls. There
was something in it that blessed the lips
and refreshed the brow better than any
thing we have found since As We think
of that dear old well, the memories of the
past flow lnto each other like crystalline
drops, sun-glinted, and all the more as we
remember that the hands that used to lay
hold the rope, and the hearts that beat
against the well-curb are still now. We
never get over these "reminiscences. George
P. Morris, the great song-writer of this
country, once said to me that his song,
"Woodman spare that Tree" was sung in
great concert hall, and
MEMORIES OF EARLY LIFE
were 80 wrought upon the audience by that
song that, after the singing was done, an
aged man arose in the audience, over
whelmed with emotion, and said, "Sir,
will you please to tell me whether the
woodman really spared the tree?" We
never forget the tree under which we
played. We never forget the fountain at
which we drank. Alas for the man who
has no early memories!
David thought Of that well, that boy
hood well, and he wanted drink of it,
but be remembered that the Philistines
had captured il. When those three men
tried 10 come up to the well in behalf of
David, they saw swords cleaning around
about it, And this is true of this Gospel
we'll. The Philistines have at times cap
tured it. When we come to take full,
old-fashioned drink of pardon and comfort,
do not ;heis swords of indignation aud sar-
casm fash? Why, the skeptics tell us that
we cannot come to that fountain! They
say the water is not fit to drink anyhow.
''If you are really thirsty now, there is the
we'll of philosophy, there is the we'll
OF art, there is the we'll of
science" They try TO substitute, instead
of our boyhood faith, modern mixtnre
They say great many beautiful things
about the soul, and they try to feed our
Immortal hunger on rOse-leayes, and mix
mint.julep of worldly stimulants when
nothing will satisfy us but "a drink of
the water of the well Of Bethlehem, which
is at the gate" They try to starve us on
husks, when the Fathers banquet is
ready, and the best ring is taken from the
cssket, and the sweetest harp is struck for
the music, and the swiftest foot is already
lifted for the dance. They patronize
heaven and abolish hell, and try to meas.
ure eternity with their hour-glasses, and
the throne of the great God with their
yard-stick abhor it, / tell you the
the old Gospel well is a captured well. !
pray God that there may be
SOMEWHERE IN THE ELECT
host three anuointed men, with courage
enough to 90 forth in the atrength of the
Iomnipotent God, with the glittering gswords
of truth, to hew the way back again to that
old we'll think the tide Is turning, and
that the old Gospel is TO take its place
again in the family, and in the university,
and in the legislative hall. Men have
tried worldly PHILOSOPHERS, and have found
out that they do not give any comfort, and
that they drop an artic midnight upon the
death-pillow. They fail when there is a
dead chill in the house; and when the
soul comes to leap in the fathomless ocean
of eternity, they give 10 the man not so
much as a broken spar to cling to. De-
pend upon it, that we'll will come into our
possession again, though it has been cap
tured. Ifthere be not three anointed men
in the Lords host with enough consecra-
ton to do the work, then the sword will
leap from Jehovah's buckler, and the
eternal three will descend-God the Father,
God the Son, God the Holy Ghost
conquering for our dying race the
way back again TO ''the water Of
the we'll of Bethlehem, which is by the
gate" at God be for us, who can be
against us?" "If God spared not his own
Son, but freely gave him up Tor us all,
how shall he not with him also freely give
us all things9" "For an persuaded that
neither height, nor depth, nor angels, nor
principalities, nor powers, nor things pres.
ent, nor things to come" shall take from
us, into final captivity, the Gospel of my
blessed Lord Jesus Christ.
Again, the Gospel well, like the one
spoken Of in my text, Is q well at the gate
The traveller stops the camel to-day, and
gets down and dips out Of the valley Of
the East, some very beautiful, clear, bright
water. and that is out o, the very well
that David longed for Do you know that
that we'll
WAS AT THE GATE,
so that nobody could 90 into Bethlehem
without going right past it? And 30 II Is
with the Gospel well-it is at the gate. 1t
is, in the first place, ut the gate Of purif-
cation. We cannot wash away our sins
unless with that water take the re-
sponsibility Of saying that there is no man,
woman or child in this house ts-day that
has escaped sinful defilement. Doyou say
"A Il outraueaus and y,poallant for me IN